Lost
by apple2011
Summary: Harry Potter finds himself outside District Twelve with no idea how he got there, but when he meets Katniss Everdeen he discovers the brutality of the Hunger Games and the Capitol. Not willing to let a friend down Harry takes the place of Peeta and goes with her to the arena but can he protect her and himself at the same time.
1. Chapter 1

Lost in Panem 

"Where the hell am I" Harry wondered as he came to his senses, the last thing he remembered was drinking at a party with Ron. He was in a forest and unlike the forbidden forest it seemed clear and open, no growls or roars filled his ears and he shrugged thinking at least he landed somewhere peaceful. He reached for the elder wand which since becoming an aurror six months ago had never left his side, he had sworn never to use it again but when his holly and phoenix feather wand began to resist him he decided that the most powerful wand ever was better than nothing.

"Katniss" a strange word and a male's voice came from deeper within the forest and Harry drew his wand, he had no idea where he was and it was better to be prepared than not. Kingsley had taught him that much during training, it had been a year since he had defeated Voldemort and the normal life he always wanted seemed to come to reality. He could live without fear of death eaters and dark lords, well until now it seemed as he had no idea where he was and knew he couldn't apparate unless he knew how far he was away from home or he risked splinching. He and Ginny had split up after a while; she wanted the fame that came with being with him and he decided that he was not going to have a gold digger for a girlfriend. There was no other word for her

"Katniss" the voice came again and was a lot more insistent, it sounded more like a name than a language and with nothing better to do Harry decided to journey into the forest, he looked carefully at the landscape for a clue as to where he was but the forest seem dense and unending.

"Katniss get down!" the voice was much closer and Harry turned to see two people in the distance. He was slightly higher up than them; an olive skinned girl with long dark hair caught his eye. She was small for her age and Harry figured she was around sixteen but while she looked thin Harry could see she was muscular underneath. She was hiding behind a bush and trying to ensure she was not seen as two uniformed men stood in front, near her was a boy. He was slightly taller but had the same darkish skin and they Harry wondered if he was related to the girl in anyway. The men however; he had never seen a uniform like that and they were hunting for someone, the girl had a bow but she wasn't using it. Harry slowly drew closer as one of the men suddenly grabbed the girl from the bush, he had seen her and she yelped

"Well look what we have here? What are you doing all the way out here girlie?" he barked in a cruel malicious voice as he pulled her face to his. She tried to kick him but he was stronger, the other drew a gun and began poking around near where she was hiding, obviously these men were not friendly and calmly Harry walked forward

"_Expelliarmus" _he shouted suddenly and a jet of red light knocked the gun out of the first man's hand. He was shocked and obviously a muggle but Harry was here to protect whoever these two were, he fired a stunner at the stunned man and pointed his want at the man holding the girl.

"Drop her now" he warned with an icy voice, he seemed conflicted and suddenly dropped the girl. He charged directly at Harry who blasted him back with a well-timed hex

"What the hell?" the girl murmured to herself as a man she had never seen before blasted two peacekeepers out of the way with some kind of wooden stick. Harry however checked to ensure the two were unconscious

"_Oblivate"_ he used the charm on both men and knew with certainty they wouldn't remember anything about this encounter.

"Who are you?" the boy asked aggressively not sure if this man was friend or foe, Harry raised his wand into the air

"Calm" he instructed not wanting to get into another fight "My name is Harry Potter". The boy studied Harry for a moment before reluctantly replying

"You just attacked a peacekeeper; they'll make you an Avox for this" it was not meant to be an insult but a warning. Harry for his part had no idea what that sentence meant

"Firstly they'll remember nothing about this encounter and secondly what the hell is an Avox?" he asked. The boy studied him for a moment but it was the girl who spoke up

"They make people an Avox then they take your tongue out and make you a servant" she informed him bluntly

"Ok, who are they?" Harry asked.

"The Capitol" the boy replied as if it was obvious

"And they are?" Harry asked still oblivious

"The Capitol, the people who rule Panem" The girl answered looking at him with confusion

"Oh good, now where is Panem and is it close to Britain?" Harry asked happy to finally get a general location.

"Britain?" the girl asked bewildered

"Ok this is getting nowhere" the boy sighed "I'm Gale and this is Katniss. Panem is the land we live in and the peacekeepers work for the Capitol who rules Panem. They didn't want us hunting in this forest and obviously someone tipped them off". His exterior was icy as he glared at the unconscious body

"Now what is that stick? Some Capitol weapon?" the boy asked once again on guard

"No, it's a wand" Harry replied.

"What you mean like wizards and fairies and the rest of the stuff we tell kids?" the girl was disbelieving; Harry conjured a circle of bluebell flames to prove his point.

"Yes" he answered as the two looked at him in awe

"How did you?" Katniss asked suspicious of a new idea such as magic. Harry rolled his eyes

"I'm a wizard and yesterday I was at a party with a friend of mine then I woke up in this forest. Somehow I got to this place you call Panem and I saw you two being hunted by those people and thought I better help you out" Harry explained slowly. He saw acceptance cloud over in Gale's eyes,

"Well you're obviously not a Capitol creation or you would have killed us already, also you attacked peacekeepers which would be pointless of a Capitol creation but I can tell you there is no place called Britain anywhere near here" he decided.

"Ok, so where do you live?" Harry asked hoping maybe to get a clue

"District twelve" Katniss answered. Harry had even less idea of where he was now, however seeing as no one hear had heard of Britain there was no way he could break the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. Which was a good thing seeing as he had already broken it twice; by using it to attack someone and prove a point

"Ok, well seeing as I have no idea where I am and you're obviously hunting how about I give you a hand while you explain the details of this place" Harry suggested.

Later

Harry was an enigma to me; how a man can appear out of nowhere and use a blinding light to knock out heavily armoured peacekeepers I have no idea but that was not what bothered me the most. He had no idea on Panem, the Capitol or even the hunger games! this amazed me and left the question, where had he grown up? Gale was convinced he wasn't a Capitol creation and she had to agree but it still left the question, where did he come from and where was this place called Britain he mentioned. Though he kind of took the fun out of hunting, with a flick of that wand thing he could paralyse an animal in a flash, Gale loved it obviously as we got almost double the game we normally get but very little of it was caught thanks to skill. Magic was a lifesaver and I couldn't help wonder what life would be like for her if I had this extraordinary gift, Harry seemed nice but at the same time older than he looked; as if he had lived through a lot.

"Sorry rewind there… they make you do what?" Harry interrupted one of Gale's explanations with pure horror filling his voice

"One boy and one girl is chosen each year and they have to fight to the death with others from the other districts" Gale summarised. Harry's shock at this I suppose he was justified but then again I suppose I never thought about what it looked like to someone who had never heard of the Hunger Games before. Harry seemed appalled by the way we were made to live and was shocked when Gale detailed the deeds of the Capitol  
"And no one has tried to stop this?" he asked

"No, anyone tries they get killed or made into an Avox" I replied wondering how someone could be so oblivious to our way of life. He and Gale seemed to share their thoughts on rebellion but I put them out of my mind for a moment, I had enough game to keep us fed for at least a week and I could make quite a lot of money. My thoughts shifted to Prim and I wondered momentarily if Harry could shut Buttercup up in some way (throwing him into a lake), speaking of Prim I needed to get back and soon. We were close to the fence and I saw Harry looking at it with interest. Gale looked ready to take him over the fence but I blocked him

"Well here we, look I'm not trying to be rude but I'm not really keen on letting someone I just met into my home" I said it calmly and hoped I didn't cause any offense.

"I understand completely, I can camp out here for a while. I'm sure I can make something up" he smiled taking me by surprise

"We'll come back" Gale suggested obviously wanting to learn more about Harry

"I'd like that" Harry grinned turning around and walking back into the trees

"No offense Katnip but he is pretty cool" Gale remarked with a smirk, I rolled my eyes

"Look he seems nice but we hardly know him and I think we should at least find out who is his before he joins the family" I scolded,

"Well he certainly gave us a hand with hunting" Gale pointed out as I slid my barely used bow back into its hiding place

"I suppose so" I answered briskly wanting to get home as quickly as possible; I listened to make sure the fence was off before approaching. Once inside the district boundaries I looked to the forest, I hoped he'd be ok. There were dogs and Trackerjackers out there, but I supposed with his wand thing he could take them all out

"Come on then" I nudged Gale who was still looking towards the forest  
"Fine but we're going back tomorrow" he decided.

"Fine" I agreed secretly happy about seeing him again.


	2. Chapter 2

Lost: Chapter Two

I was walking in the forest once more, I had been stuck in this place for a week now and I had no idea on how to get back. The forest may be pleasant but not for a whole week, I built a shelter on the day I arrived but I had no idea I would spend another seven days in this place. Everyday Katniss would visit, sometimes she would be with Gale, other times alone but she needed to hunt, I help out in any way I can and she often quizzes me on Britain and I ask her about Panem. I shouldn't judge but it's awful, brutality and fear seem to be the Capitol's only tools as they bleed a nation dry and oppress anyone who stand in their war. What was worse that it worked well for them, the system leaves people like Katniss out in the cold and she has to hunt just so she can survive, so I suppose it was these thoughts that made me decide to check out some of District Twelve. I was only a few metres away from the fence and like Katniss listened for that hum of electricity; there was none. So slowly I slipped through the fence and decided to explore the district, the elder wand was in my pocket and could be drawn at a moments notice should I need it.

Meanwhile (Katniss)

Prim and me were going to the market, I needed to sell some more Squirrel and collect my Tessera from the Justice building. My name was in the ball twenty times this year but I would only allow Prim to put her name in once, she would not be going into the arena no matter what happened. It was unlikely anyway with her name only being in their once but I didn't want to risk it, so after I sold my game Prim asked if we could take a look around. She ran straight to the jewellery and clothes which we couldn't afford full stop but I suppose it was better to hope and wish than accept it blindly, though I noticed suddenly her attention was turned in one direction, after a brief conversation with Greasy Sae I decided to see what was bothering her.

"Do you know that boy?" she asked when I approached, most people in District Twelve knew everyone; well at least in the seam so she was obviously trying to find someone.

"Which boy?" I asked turning to see Harry Potter of all people browsing through the Hob, what was he doing here? in hindsight I should've expected him to get bored with the forest and come for a look around but it was a shock. I wasn't the only one who saw him either; a few others were staring at him with curiosity but he seemed oblivious. His wand was in his pocket and I was worried someone might steal it; then again it was a wooden stick ad even thieves had better things to steal, however I wasn't happy with him being here. This could cause a lot of unwanted questions

"Harry," I growled lowly walking over to him.

"Katniss," he replied warmly. I rolled my eyes

"What are you doing here?" I asked trying to ignore the stares everyone was giving us

"I thought I'd see what it's like around here, the forest does get boring," he joked. I was about to lecture him on why she should have waited until we at least had a cover story for him to use when Prim came over

"Katniss?" she questioned unsure whether or not I should be speaking to Harry

"Hello," Harry greeted smiling at her "who are you? I'm betting your Katniss's sister," .

"I'm Prim," she introduced politely her eyes fell on his lightning bolt scar and she seemed curious for a moment, but she decided not to ask in the end

"This is Harry, he's a friend of mine," I told her quickly not wanting to her to ask where he came from, however things never seem to go my way

"I haven't seen you before," she stated curiously. I hoped Harry would have a story ready,

"No you haven't I'm an orphan. I used to hang around where people could spare money and food but I decided to see what it was like down here," he responded. Not a terrible story I'll give him that, however it doesn't seem like the kind of thing you say when people are listening

"Oh you poor thing," Greasy Sae began immediacy with pity in her eyes, a few others heard and cast sympathetic looks, Prim buying the story immediately had tears in her eyes

"So where do you live?" she asked after a while

"Here and there," Harry answered somewhat awkwardly, already I knew what was coming next. Prim always had a kind heart which was one of the reason I rarely took her hunting but her compassion and patience were astronomical.

"Could he stay with us Katniss?" she asked realising that meant he had no home. I groaned inwardly, sure I liked Harry but the idea of him moving into our already crammed house was not very appealing. On the other hand he could prove very useful with magic and that was worth him staying with us

"Fine," I conceded after a moment realising I would have little say in the matter in the end. Prim would keep going and going on about it until I relented, how she could have such an infinite capacity for patience I didn't know.

The Justice building (Harry)

You had to admire Prim's determination and kindness, already she invited someone she didn't even know into her home because they had nowhere else to go. She's lovely and during the whole trip didn't stop questioning me on my life and what I liked, Katniss remained disgruntled throughout and I realised she didn't really want me meeting Prim. It took a while for me to work out that I resembled hope in a bizarre way, a person who overcame hunger and starvation (supposedly), hope just didn't exist where she came from. I could see it clearly, they had become so used to the fact that they had to starve and two children would die every year for the amusement of their oppressors they didn't was accepted. Me being around Prim could give her an outside perspective and Katniss didn't want that. So as we got to the Justice building I like something was off, I had no idea what she was here for but as we entered a mostly empty entrance hall with a single desk and a pointy faced woman behind. She gave us disapproving glares

"I'm here for my Tessera," Katniss explained using a word that made little sense. The woman gave her a disapproving stare before asking a number of questions then she disappeared for a second and returned with a tiny bottle of what looked like cooking oil and also a small silver pot. What was going on?

"Prim, what's going on?" I asked the twelve year old, slowly she explained how the Tessera worked and how many times Katniss's name would be in the ball this year. I was angry more than anything at the very idea that the Capitol offered food in exchange in adding your name more times to that sickening draw.

"So am I," Harry interrupted suddenly, the woman looked disapproving again

"Name?" the woman asked. Realising my name wouldn't be in the system I raised my wand, she looked down in order to see what I was pointing at her and after ensuring that the CCTV cameras wouldn't see what he was about to do.

"_Confundus!" _he hissed seeing as the building was practically empty. Ignoring the surprised gasp of Prim I waited for the woman's eyes to cloud over before stating

"Harry Potter, there are nine people in my family" I told her exposed mind. After a few moments her eyes once again refocused and her disapproving stare hit him at full blast, then once more she excused herself and returned with a much larger bottle and pot, Katniss was looking at me with appreciation and surprise while Prim just looked bewildered. I smiled at them before taking the Tessera, in hindsight I could have realised that I just put my name in the draw but after surviving; Voldemort, Death Eaters, A giant snake, Dementors and more. I think I could probably handle kids in an arena and Katniss and her family get a bit more oil and grain. What Katniss didn't mention until after we left was the Reaping was tomorrow and my name would be very close to the top.


	3. Chapter 3

Lost: Chapter Three

It took the entire journey home to explain what magic was to Prim, she had seen me use it so she was entitled to an explanation, I had also put my name into a ball nine times so they would get a bit more to eat and had risked going into the arena for them.

"Can you do anything?" was her first question, I answered truthfully and explained what I could and couldn't do and Prim's eyes lit up. Katniss didn't interject during the conversation and was obviously still a bit angry I had turned up in the middle of the district but also pleased that I had risked my own life for her family; well if by risking my life I meant entering an arena with the deathstick and magic which probably put the odds up for me a bit. Prim was enchanted by the idea of magic and I did a few demonstrations on the way to her home, she enjoyed the golden birds I made which flew around her head like a halo. Even Katniss smiled when they did the same to her, she seemed distracted and also relieved that I was distracting Prim, the reaping as they call it is tomorrow and I felt nervous. Not form me but these two, Katniss had a good chance of being called up as did Gale, Prim had less of a chance but her name was in the ball nevertheless, either could be called up and so could I supposed but it would a lot easier for me than them. For them it must be terrifying but there was nothing I could do except help them in any way I could and if keeping Prim distracted was helping then I would keep doing it.

Later

I found Katniss's mother less than welcoming in all honesty, I hadn't heard much about her other than the fact Katniss did not get on with her much due to her falling into a depression after their father died. Obviously she was suspicious of someone staying in her home that she didn't know but eventually Katniss beat her down, I didn't tell her about magic as Katniss asked me not to but I could tell the woman had gone through a lot, though I decided to sleep on the floor as there wasn't enough space in this house for the family let alone a guest. I suppose that was what made me decide I wasn't going to leave, firstly I had no way of leaving but there was no way I was going to leave any family in this kind of position, not now, not ever. Then the sound of sobs filled my ears, it was Prim; concerned I quietly crept up the stairs and found Katniss comforting Prim.

"It was me," she was sobbing and I already knew what she must have dreamt, my heart went out to her but I thought it would be better for Katniss to speak to her sister than me, so I crept back downstairs with no idea how tomorrow was going to play out.

The next day

"What the hell is that?" I asked aloud, sneaking into the reaping was a lot easier than I thought but my presence caused Gale to jump out of his skin. My comment was directed at what looked like a stick insect with a paler skin than Voldemort, she was wearing a pink wig (didn't hide it very well either) and was the strangest woman I had ever seen. She was wearing enough makeup to drown at least nine cats and looked like Umbridge gone wrong, very wrong

"What are you doing here?" Gale demanded quietly, I quickly explained what had happened in regards to staying with Katniss, adding my name to the reaping ball and the rest. Gale looked quietly impressed but I noticed few people were staring at me, I looked out-of-place and a few were wondering who I was. Though I had no time for idle chit-chat and I looked over the line for Katniss, she was looking for Prim who I knew had freaked out when they tried to take her blood, hopefully she was ok but I couldn't see Prim anywhere.

"Happy Hunger Games," the woman called Effie Trinket announced in a voice that could have shattered glass, a man was standing close to her and looked drunk. Very drunk in fact but my eyes were on the district escort who was mumbling a number of things which sounded like propaganda and I immediately put it out of my head. A few peacekeepers walked up the isles of kids and I recognised one, it was the same one I knocked out in the forest the other day. Then after a moment I noticed Effie Trinket put her name into one of the glass balls after declaring

"Ladies first!" she rummaged around for a few moments before grabbing a piece of paper and shouting

"Primrose Everdeen." Gale put his hands over his face and I noticed the girls move aside to create a path, the elder wand was already in my hand as I pushed my way through the crowd hoping to save Prim from whatever fate was going to await her. In hindsight I could have thought of a better plan but it was too late, Katniss suddenly leapt forward and shouted

"I volunteer!" wait you could volunteer? This made things a lot easier and didn't involve me attack peacekeepers, instead I watched Gale grab Prim who didn't want to let go of Katniss. Effie looked conflicted as if she didn't want to break the rules but the drunk waved her protests to the side, instead Katniss was escorted to the stage where the woman asked a number of questions.

"And now the boys!" she announced firmly.

"Peeta Mellark," I had never heard the name but Katniss was looking horrified and it seemed this kid was going to have the luckiest day of his life as I entered the isle the boys had made for him and shouted.

"I volunteer," a gasp ran through the crowd, evidently this was the first time two people volunteered. A few people were still wondering who I was but ignoring them I walked forward and was helped onto the stage by the woman who grabbed my hand. It was covered in white powder

"Another turn of events as District Twelve gets its first ever male and female volunteers," she announced looking excited.

"What's your name?" she asked me eventually.

"Harry Potter," I replied, she continued speaking and I saw Katniss looking at me with shock, I gave her a look that said _what you think you can get rid of me that easily_. The elder wand was in my pocket and it was a good thing I put a charm on it that meant it couldn't be stolen or seen unless I was using it. Slowly; painfully slowly the reaping ending and we were sent into the justice building and placed in a room by a burly looking peacekeeper. I wasn't expecting anyone to come and see me but I was taken my surprise when Prim entered the room

"You will help her right?" she demanded quickly knowing she couldn't mention magic while in the room. I crouched down until I was level with her.

"I promise I will do everything I can to bring your sister home," I assured her, she then wrapped me in a hug before being taken out

"Good luck!" she cried before the door slammed shut. After a while (Katniss had a lot of visitors) we were escorted to a car with Effie Trinket who is still the creepiest looking woman I have ever seen in my life but she was more talkative. Well she was bragging about the different things the capitol had before we would be thrown into the arena, it was both the strangest and funniest thing I had ever heard. It was like someone going; _here's a gold coin now I'm going to stab you three times in the face_. Katniss looked slightly blank, she was busy thinking about Prim and her mother and if they would survive without her, I'm sure they would. Gale would take good care of them and Prim had her goat if things got really bad but it wouldn't stop her worrying; not by a long shot.


	4. Chapter 4

Lost

The train blew me away, I had heard stories of the luxury the victors received but it was nothing compared to the real thing. Crystal chandeliers glinted in the light which reflected a shine on the food positioned around the table accompanied with glistening glass bottles; filled with every colour of liquid. To a person like me it was a dream come true, something I thought would be impossible for someone like me but yet here it was. It was almost enough to distract me from my main train of thought.

How could he do it? How could he volunteer? Why the hell would he do that after all I've told him about the hunger games? He knows that we have to fight against each other and there is only one victor and yet he did it anyway. He could have stayed and helped Prim who had visited him not long after she did the same to me, he could have helped everyone with his magic so why would he do something like this? Just why?

"How could you?" I demanded the moment Effie Trinket had left to find Haymitch, everyone knew he was a drunk so the first logical place was the bar cart leaving me a few crucial seconds.

"Sorry?" he asked and I almost strangled him, he couldn't be this clueless.

"How could you volunteer? You could have stayed and helped Prim and the others," I explained through gritted teeth

"Then who would help you?" he asked looking concerned, great feeling from someone he was supposed to kill in a few weeks. I wonder how that would play down with the cameras? Oh they were going to love him? A handsome component boy who had an unexplainable tendency to vanish or shoot fire from his fingertips? Not that we could use magically openly; it would give President Snow a heart attack and Harry would spend the next few weeks being medically examined for his magic.

"No one can help me, don't you understand there is one winner, if you would have stayed back at district twelve then Prim would have someone to rely on, Gabe would have someone to talk to and everyone else would have a good luck charm," I scorned looking angry, he had magic he could do anything and now we were going into the arena.

"Katniss I've been breaking rules all my life, I'm not going to let either of us die," he tried to assure me but all I could do was a laugh

"You can't underestimate the Capitol, if they can enslave twelve districts and force them to murder their children then what are they going to do to us?" I demanded angrily.

"I don't know but I'm not going to let you walk into a death match alone, I was halfway to blowing the justice building to shreds when they called Prim up so don't worry about me, let me worry about you and me, you focus on you. I know that made no sense but think about it," He trailed off looking slightly confused at his own words. I was about to continue the argument when a rather drunk Haymitch wandered in, he was not completely drunk but he was halfway there. Harry shot me a look that clearly said _look united_ and so we sat down next to each other as he sloppily poured himself a drink.  
"The volunteers," he remarked looking unsure as to whether or not he should go back to his cabin and drink himself to death, my anger was now slowly melting away for Harry and was instead focusing on our mentor who seemed like he would rather take the drink than us.

"That's us," Harry responded curtly also unsure but he was more concerned if whether or not he could trust this man, though it didn't take long for him to realise a man who won the games would be of some help, if he was drunk he would be less so. Before Haymitch could take one drink Harry's wand was in his hand, Haymitch didn't see it but he looked up slightly when Harry moved to speak

"_Accio," _he stated clearly and the glass shot from Haymitch's hand and into Harry's, somehow this was not shocking to me in any way and I wondered just how desensitised to magic I had become, once it was the talk of children and now it was something I openly accepted.

"My drink," was the first thing he said before he had time to process what had just happened, then slowly he looked up at Harry. His eyes were like those of a Lion about to pounce but he was unsure if Harry had any more tricks up his sleeves,

"What was that?" he asked lowly,

"What was what?" Harry asked feigning confusion as he tucked his wand back into his pocket,

"That, what did you just do?" the man questioned not sure if this was some kind of hallucination, his finger was pointing to the drink Harry held in one hand.

"Oh that," I interrupted, Haymitch turned to me with narrowed eyes

"Yes that!" he encouraged wanting to what the hell was going on

"Depends on how drunk you're intending to get? Before you talk to us that is," I informed him darkly, I had never liked him that much; he was always drunk and unapproachable. Also his focus on the drink was one of the main reasons our tributes went into the arena unprepared.

"Oh goodie I get the blackmailers," he sighed looking across at the table with the rest of the drink.

"Try it and trust me it won't be there when you arrive," Harry warned not having much patience with the man

"Ok, Ok you got me well done, you confused a drunk man I hope your proud of yourselves. Now what do you want?" he asked finally looking a mixture of depressed and furious.

"I want you to tell us what you can about the games and in return I'll tell you about the many wonders I have at my disposal," Harry advised and I saw acceptance creep across the older man's face as he regarded Harry. Maybe he was used to tributes being a crying wreck or maybe it was something else, whatever the case he seemed less annoyed as he informed us on the horrors awaiting.

"We could light a fire," Harry suggested , Haymitch looked at him and then me with some anger

"Ok first rule, there is no we, there is no us. Now I'm sorry to break it to you kids but only one person is coming out of the arena alive so don't delude yourselves," he warned looking sincere and I could tell he was speaking from experience.

"We could light a fire," Harry suggested ignoring the man completely,

"Fine whatever, terrible idea though, a fire can be seen from anywhere and they'll be looking, trust me," Haymitch growled.

"Thanks for the advice," I remarked, my voice filled with sarcasm.

"I'd watch the tongue, it won't help in the arena unless you're trying to annoy people to death," was his equally sarcastic reply,

"Don't argue," Harry advised and Haymitch turned to him, the time we spent talking had sobered him up to a point where he remembered the events which led him to actually speaking with us.

"So what was it? Some kind of weapon because they will find it," he warned and Harry laughed softly before withdrawing his wand.

"As much as a wooden stick is going to help I'm sure it's not needed right now," Haymtich remarked dryly but his voice fell into a stammer when Harry made a few complicated gestures and slowly the bottle of drink from the table floated over. It filled itself and the air offered Haymitch a drink which he gulped down in a second, obviously needing it

"What is that?" he asked knowing it was no kind of technology the Capitol had, or at least he had seen. I was praying Effie wouldn't walk in right now because explaining it once was hard enough.

"Magic," Harry smiled waving it again and suddenly the food on the table busily rearranged itself and offered a biscuit to each of us, I took one but Haymitch just gawped.

"How?" he asked next but Harry let this question slide away.

"Can you use it?" he demanded suddenly turning to me and I shook my head

"Oh, oh, I get it. You're not here to win, your here with your tricks to get her out of here," he smiled and I saw something flicker behind his eyes as he saw through Harry.

"Perhaps," Harry replied and Haymitch smiled.

"The Capitol is relentless, if you let them see that then you will find your goal very hard to achieve," Haymitch warned

"I can handle it," Harry replied with an air of confidence,

"Can you? Because they will snatch you up and turn you into some kind of spectacle, a weapon to keep the others in line, they may try and obtain your power I don't know. But I do know that you need to be careful," Haymitch continued looking stern. Harry moved to say something but was interrupted.

"What on earth is going on..." Effie Trinket demanded wandering in but the moment she saw the flying plates she fainted.

"Well at least someone else did it," Haymitch sighed turning away from her slumped sleeping form.

The next day

After Harry had levitated Effie back to her bed we had all got some much needed sleep before we were due to arrive in the Capitol the following morning. Haymitch had propped endlessly about magic and I had seemed almost like a third wheel, Harry had this power and was going into the arena with it while all I had was a bow and arrow. Something that getting hold of in the arena would be near impossible thanks to the career tributes.

"Good morning," Harry noted as I walked back into the dining room, everyone else was up and eating and I felt slightly out of place as I walked in. Effie looked even paler than normal and even though she had been assured she had a bad dream she was looking at breakfast as if it might suddenly come alive.

"Morning," I greeted back with a slight smile, sleep had given me time to think on his decision and I could understand why he volunteered to help me.

"Manners," Effie still had the ability to scold me as I neglected my knife and fork when tucking into some of the many dished the Capitol had made available. Some things never changed it seemed and yet I heard what sounded like cheering from afar and as I looked up I saw a city on the horizon

"Is that?" I gasped looking at the tall buildings stretching into the sky, it was like something from a dream and then out of the window I saw people cheering as we pulled into a station.

"Oh we're here," Haymitch muttered looking almost indifferent but he rose to his feet and prepared to leave the train, it was only when the door opened did I realise this was a reality. I looked giddy and Harry took my hand slightly intending only to give it a shake, however as the door was open and a terrific cheer went up at the sight of us holding hands he smiled. Then together we walked out of the train and towards our fate.


	5. Chapter 5

Lost

A crowd had gathered apparently as normal according to Katniss, all waving and cheering as the tributes arrived; what in God's name was this? It was repulsive and yet I could see families and children in the crowd all geared up to see what to them was human sacrifice. Me holding Katniss's hand seemed to make them go even crazier, I could see a line of uniformed peacekeepers stopping the crowd getting to us but the fact they needed security for something like this was absurd. Well that had been the general train of my thoughts ever since I came to this world; how could anyone do something like this? So nothing much had changed. However one thing I had to notice was the freaks, well I say freaks pretty much everyone except three people. I thought Effie looked odd but right now she was the definition of sanity, people with striped skin; chest inflations that looked like balloons; foot long eyebrows; every colour of hair in different forms and jewellery you would find in a muggle history book. Lip plates, studs through cheeks and worse made this crowd look bewildering, If Vernon came here he would leave loving magic and a new definition of the word freaks. What made it worse was there were people starving in District twelve and others most likely and they sat here making themselves look like plastic people.

"This way," Haymitch gestured looking almost sober as he walked in between the guards while the crowd moved as one to get a look at us, I had seen world cup Quidditch games getting less coverage than this. It was ridiculous and my wand slowly vibrated as my anger at these people grew, but I was not going to use it in public; I would need it in the arena and I'm sure the Capitol would be a little too interested in it for my tastes. Katniss felt the same way apparently as she was looking at the crowd with confusion more than anything but then it hit me, we needed sponsors, popularity and all the rest. So my face grew the mask of a smile and I started waving with my free hand, they loved it and with a nudge I got Katniss to do the same thing. It felt like I was a dancing monkey but if it helped in some way then I suppose it was worth it, the word suppose being a central part of my thought process.

"You ok," I mumbled to her, she seemed to be watching the crowd in the same way as I was, maybe I was more like her than I thought. She did volunteer for a person she loved and I knew if I was in her shoes I would have done the same thing.

"It's... overwhelming," she muttered back and I knew how she felt, when I defeated Voldemort there were cheers and a huge hug but it felt reliving, it was over but now we were being cheered because they were looking forward to us dying or killing others. There was something sickening about it, however despite feeling cheap and almost dirty we cut though the crowd.

"Through here," A burly looking Peacekeeper directed into a large building that was connected to the train station by only a short walk but the presence of everyone else made the journey feel ten times as long.

"Boys to the left, Girl's right," the same man ordered looking almost as if he was trying to intimidate us, maybe his job was to stop us running off but ignoring the sudden urge to hit him with a powerful stunner I nodded to Katniss whose hand fell away from mine and walked away to whatever the Capitol had in store next. However if they try to give me whiskers then I swear someone is going to be flying out of the window.

Later- Katniss

I left what I supposed was the cleaning room with skin rubbed raw from constant scrubbings, washings and more. It seemed the stylists wanted me to look everything but natural and already I was coated in layers of makeup that made me look like a doll more than anything else. The part I didn't mention to Harry earlier was the clothing, every year the designers dress us up like coal miners or worse cover us in black dust while naked. I didn't mention that part to Harry because I was trying not to think of it and if I'm going to have to go through it he can go through it with more shock to make me feel slightly better. Though I was led into another smaller room which I supposed belonged to the designer.

"That was the bravest thing I have ever seen," a smooth reassuring voice entered the room after about five minutes; accompanying it was a dark skinned man of fair height, a thin but somewhat muscular man greeted me with a smile they linked in with his kind blue eyes.

"Volunteering for your sister that was something," he continued his greeting as I studied him; he didn't seem to be the usual Capitol type, no extended features or whiskers, if anything he seemed normal.

"I'm Cinna," he explained shaking my hand,

"Katniss," I greeted presuming he already knew it but as Effie Trinket would say; manners.

"Your new aren't you?" I asked they always gave newcomers District Twelve,

"Yes I am," he answered

"So you're stuck with me," I smiled

"I requested you, anyway who did you hair?" he changed the subject quickly; smoothly

"My mother," I answered

"I like it, anyway we need to discuss your costume for the games, would you like something to eat?" he asked kindly pressing a button, a small table suddenly rose up from the floor and food; seemingly fresh appeared alongside it. Wow imagine something like this in District twelve, it would change our lives and yet while we scavenge for food they have it at the press of a button.

"How despicable we must look to you," Cinna said softly as if he was reading my thoughts, in some ways I had to agree.

"Right anyway normally stylists just put you in coal mining outfits but I don't want to do that, instead I thought of something else; we burn coal so what if you wore flames," he suggested in a final tone that told me he already made the dress.

"What?" I asked thinking the Capitol had given us a maniac to design our clothes, setting us on fire?

"Only a synthetic flame, don't worry," Cinna assured me but it did not convince, I was sure I would be barbecued long before we reached the end of our journey.

A few hours later I was being led in a tight black dress which was currently not alight but the fire in Cinna's hand looked all too realistic, Harry seemed to be looking at it the same way I was.

"That looks a lot like real fire," he pointed out and Cinna smiled

"That's the point, trust me it won't hurt at all," his promises were overshadowed by the flaming splint in his hand, using his free hand he ushered us onto the chariot. Carefully I took my place next to Harry and suddenly a bright orange exploded into view from behind, we both were suddenly transfixed on the way forward.

"What not been on fire before?" I asked Harry with a smile

"Once a dragon attacked me but other than that no," he answered back sending me into slight shock; he never mentioned Dragons? Then again with magic why not Dragons? It was something to talk about later

"One more thing, you two hold hands," Cinna requested and we both did, something that must have seemed strange to him seeing as we were supposed to be fighting to the death in a few days time. Anyway he simply smiled and before we could speak further we were being whisked away by the two horses. Slowly, ever so slowly they took us towards the strip we would be shown off but the moment we came into view a gasp went up through the crowd. Some looked worried; others shocked, some enthralled but within seconds it had descended into fanatic cheering, we and Harry waved; blew kisses to the audience and raised our joined hands into the air. We were the only tributes to do this and it seemed the audience were ecstatic at how unified we seemed; something that seemed odd considering the nature of the games but Capitol people were not what I was used to. The flames probably also helped in regards to the cheering but I was trying not to focus on them, they were a bit intimidating and I was thankful at the end when they extinguished. Instead I saw President Snow slowly walk out to his podium above to give his welcome speech.

Later

"So who is he?" President Snow asked from his seat, he was evidently disgruntled at being asked to meet with his advisors so late at night. However he was now confused; it seemed not a single record existed on Harry Potter something that concerned him. What if he was from thirteen? a refugee or a spy? something like that could bring his fragile system down.

"We don't know sir, we've even contacted the other district and they have never heard of him either," this meeting was secret and it was the only time Snow would ever permit the hidden district to be discussed. Only those closeste to him could ever know, and all these people once they retired would be killed to ensure the Capitol always looked strong. The idea of it being held at negotiating point by another district led to treason.

"Off course Coin would lie," he hissed angrily, the woman wanted power and having to talk to the Capitol would be something she would hate. They only spoke when it was essential; when a Capitol air patrol needed to stop a fugitive, when the Capitol wanted a traitor returned to them but whenever they spoke they both knew a war would come. Snow at the moment had the upper hand but where missiles were concerned he was wary, however the introduction of this boy could tip the balance.

"We don't think so, none of our sensors around thirteen were alerted nor airspace of underground, it looks like this boy appeared out of nowhere, everyone's birth is recorded, their blood taken and registered. Even if he was homeless he would not be a ghost to us," was the reply.

"So none of you know who he is? What do I pay you for? Have you asked around the District?" Snow demanded looking angry, this was unheard of in his administration. Everyone was known to him and yet this one person was now a threat to his work.

"We have, no one had even heard of the boy since last week, not a single person had seen him. The mayor said he did not recognise the boy but then again he does not take count of all children, there are no school records and when we took his blood sample earlier during the reaping not a single person matched. No relatives known, he's a ghost,"

"Impossible, how can someone appear from nowhere... check every record again and look even deeper, you may look at our files from before the dark days and Panem itself. I want him identified and known to us," Snow decided, that was a rare privilege. He only gave the districts materials that portrayed the old world as corrupt and unstable, he knew the truth was different due to his vast collection of books but he did not want them getting out  
"Should we postpone the games sir?" his advisor suggested

"Definitely not, it would cause alarm and at the moment Mr Potter is in our land, whoever he is we need to find out who it is. Then if he is a threat he will be the games and under our watch, if he is an ally then we can manipulate the odds this time, we shall see,"


End file.
